South Kingstown, RI – July 1, 1941

September 21, 2016

South Kingstown, Rhode Island – July 1, 1941

Matunuck Beach

At about 11:30 a.m., on July 1, 1941, a small airplane with a man and a woman aboard left Newport Airport bound for New York City. The woman was Miss Eleanor Young, 23, and her companion was Nicholas S. Embirieos, 31. Both were known in society circles.

As the plane flew across Narragansett Bay it encountered fog conditions. Embirieos, who was at the controls, circled the area of Matunuck Beach several times before the aircraft suddenly crashed into the water just off shore of Matunuck Beach, a popular swimming area in South Kingstown R.I. Both occupants were pulled from the wreck by lifeguards, George Gilson, and David Smith, but died of their injuries.

A photograph of part of the plane wreckage can be found on page 53 of the book, “Images Of America – South Shore Rhode Island”, by Betty J. Cotter, 1999.

Sources:

New York Times, “Eleanor Young Dies In Air Crash; Was One Of First Glamor Girls”, July 2, 1941